Medicinal Herbs in the Relief of Neurological, Cardiovascular, and Respiratory Symptoms after COVID-19 Infection A Literature Review.

COVID-19 infection causes complications, even in people who have had a mild course of the disease. The most dangerous seem to be neurological ailments: anxiety, depression, mixed anxiety-depressive (MAD) syndromes, and irreversible dementia. These conditions can negatively affect the respiratory system, circulatory system, and heart functioning.

Adsorption and selectivity studies of direct and magnetite-cored molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs and magMIPs) towards chosen chalcones investigated with various analytical methods.

The following article presents a method for obtaining molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) dedicated to -chalcone (TC) and 2',4'-dihydroxy-3-methoxychalcone (DHMC). The synthetic protocol optimized with a choice of the most suitable functional monomer led to the synthesis of MIPs and their non-imprinted equivalents (NIP) performed direct polymerization or on the surface of magnetite nanoparticles. The characterized materials were investigated for adsorption isotherms of TC and DHMC, which led to satisfactory values of maximal adsorption capacity, reaching 131.

The Electrospray (ESI) and Flowing Atmosphere-Pressure Afterglow (FAPA) Mass Spectrometry Studies of Nitrophenols (Plant Growth Stimulants) Removed Using Strong Base-Functionalized Materials.

The functional silica-based materials functionalized with a strong nitrogen base TBD (SiO-TBD) deposited via a linker or with a basic poly(amidoamine) dendrimer containing multiple terminal amine groups -NH (SiO-EDA) and functional polymers containing a strong phosphazene base (Polymer-Phosphazene) or another basic poly(amidoamine) dendrimer (PMVEAMA-PAMAM) were tested as sorbents dedicated to a mixture of nitrophenols (-nitrophenol and 2-methoxy-5-nitrophenol), which are analogs of nitrophenols used in plant growth biostimulants. The adsorptive potential of the studied materials reached 0.102, 0.

Modification of Magnetite Nanoparticles with Triazine-Based Dendrons and Their Application as Drug-Transporting Systems.

The following research aims at the synthesis of magnetite nanoparticles functionalized with triazine-based dendrons and the application of the obtained materials as effective sorptive materials dedicated to acidic bioactive compounds. The adopted synthetic approach involved: (1) the synthesis of nanosized FeO particles via classic co-precipitation method, (2) the introduction of amine groups on their surface leading to materials' precursor, and (3) the final synthesis of branched triazine-based dendrons on the support surface by an iterative reaction between cyanuric chloride (CC) and piperazine (p) or diethylenetriamine (DETA) via nucleophilic substitution. The characterized materials were tested for their adsorptive properties towards folic acid, 18β-glycyrrhetinic acid, and vancomycin, showing high adsorption capacities varying in the ranges of 53.

Mass Spectrometric Investigation of Organo-Functionalized Magnetic Nanoparticles Binding Properties toward Chalcones.

Chalcones are naturally occurring compounds exhibiting multiple biological functions related to their structure. The investigation of complexes formed by chalcones, namely 2',4'-dihydroxy-2-methoxychalcone (DH-2-MC) and 2',4'-dihydroxy-3-methoxychalcone (DH-3-MC), with organo-functionalized FeO magnetic nanoparticles using mass spectrometric techniques is reported. The magnetic nanoparticles were obtained by the silanization of FeO particles with 3-aminopropyltrimethosysilane, which were subsequently reacted with 3-hydroxybenzaldehyde (3-HBA) or 2-pyridinecarboxaldehyde (2-PCA), resulting in the formation of Schiff base derivatives.

Deferoxamine-Modified Hybrid Materials for Direct Chelation of Fe(III) Ions from Aqueous Solutions and Indication of the Competitiveness of Complexing toward a Biological System.

Deferoxamine (DFO) is one of the most potent iron ion complexing agent belonging to a class of trihydroxamic acids. The extremely high stability constant of the DFO-Fe complex (log β = 30.6) prompts the use of deferoxamine as a targeted receptor for scavenging Fe(III) ions.

Disruption of insect immunity using analogs of the pleiotropic insect peptide hormone Neb-colloostatin: a nanotech approach for pest control II.

This work continues our studies on the pleiotropic activity of the insect peptide Neb-colloostatin in insects. In vivo immunological bioassays demonstrated that hemocytotoxic analogs of Neb-colloostatin injected into Tenebrio molitor significantly reduced the number of hemocytes in the hemolymph and impaired phagocytosis, nodulation and phenoloxidase activities in the insects. Among the analogs tested, [Ala]-,[Val]-, [Hyp]- and [Ach]-colloostatin were particularly potent in disrupting cellular immunity in larvae, pupae and adult insects.

Environmental impact of molecularly imprinted polymers used as analyte sorbents in mass spectrometry.

The molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) with the following herbicides used as templates 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D) or 4-chloro-2-methylphenoxy- acetic acid (MCPA) were synthesized by precipitation polymerization technique using 4-vinylpyridine (4-VP) as a functional monomer, ethylene glycol dimethacrylate (EGDMA) as a cross-linking agent, and 2,2'-azobisisobutyronitrile (AIBN) as an initiator in methanol solvent. For the flavonoid MIPs, rutin (Ru) and quercetin (Q) were used as templates and synthesized via a similar technique, utilizing acrylamide (AA) as a functional monomer. Analysis of binding in the molecularly imprinted and non-imprinted polymer (NIP) has proved that MIP shows a higher affinity towards the analytes, compared to NIP.

Analysis of Amygdalin in Various Matrices Using Electrospray Ionization and Flowing Atmospheric-Pressure Afterglow Mass Spectrometry.

Amygdalin is a natural cyanogenic compound that plants produce in the fight against insects and herbivores. Excessive amounts of amygdalin by animals and humans can potentially lead to fatal intoxication. However, studies confirm that amygdalin has antitumor properties, including the ability to inhibit the proliferation of cancer cells and to induce their apoptosis.

ESR Method in Monitoring of Nanoparticle Endocytosis in Cancer Cells.

Magnetic nanoparticles are extensively studied for their use in diagnostics and medical therapy. The behavior of nanoparticles after adding them to cell culture is an essential factor (i.e.

Dendrimer-Functionalized Hybrid Materials Based on Silica as Novel Carriers of Bioactive Acids.

One of the major goals in the materials science is the design and development of non-toxic, versatile, and efficient drug delivery systems. The study reported in this paper concerns the syntheses of poly(amidoamine) (PAMAM) dendrimers with tris(2-aminoethyl)amine as an amine core and different terminal amines, and their attachment to silica matrix. The obtained ethylenediamine (EDA), triethylenetetramine (TETA), tris(2-aminoethyl)amine (TREN) and 4,7,10-trioxa-1,13-tridecanediamine (TRI-OXA) dendrimers were introduced to the support surface via an epoxy linker, leading to a loading efficiency in the range of 0.

Molecularly Imprinted Polymers and Magnetic Molecularly Imprinted Polymers for Selective Determination of Estrogens in Water by ESI-MS/FAPA-MS.

Qualitative and quantitative analysis of estrogens content in natural water is a difficult task. An important problem in the analysis of hormones in water is the quantitative determination of their individual species. Low detection limits and instability of estrogen derivatives are the main challenges.

Photoacoustic Spectroscopy of Surface-Functionalized FeO-SiO Nanoparticles.

A permanent development of hybrid materials based on the highly absorptive or opaque materials has prompted a need of analytical tools, which are able to overcome obstacles connected with their physicochemical features. Iron oxide (II, III) (FeO) nanoparticles gained a huge attention as supporters, as they are not only easily accessible using various synthetic approaches, but they also exhibit homogeneity and paramagnetic properties, which make them easily separable materials. Nevertheless, the classic infrared spectroscopic studies might meet several problems with characterization of such systems.

ESR as a monitoring method of the interactions between TEMPO-functionalized magnetic nanoparticles and yeast cells.

Potential application of magnetic nanoparticles as drug carriers in medical treatment requires prior determination of their effects on cells. In this work different spin labels and magnetic nanoparticles functionalized with spin labels as well as their interaction with yeast cells were investigated using electron spin resonance (ESR) method. ESR was demonstrated to be a suitable method for monitoring of magnetic core and attached spin labels.

The influence of cross-linking agent onto adsorption properties, release behavior and cytotoxicity of doxorubicin-imprinted microparticles.

Molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) are synthetic polymers that possess cavities selective towards their molecular templates and have found many applications in separation science, drug delivery, and catalysis. Here, we report the synthesis of doxorubicin-imprinted microparticles cross-linked with two different compounds (ethylene glycol dimethacrylate or trimethylolpropane trimethacrylate) and examination of their physicochemical properties. During the synthesis methacrylic acid was used as functional monomer and 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate was added into polymerization mixture to increase hydrophilicity of the obtained materials and therefore improve interactions with aqueous release medium.

Impairment of the immune response after transcuticular introduction of the insect gonadoinhibitory and hemocytotoxic peptide Neb-colloostatin: A nanotech approach for pest control.

This article shows that nanodiamonds can transmigrate through the insect cuticle easily, and the doses used were not hemocytotoxic and did not cause inhibition of cellular and humoral immune responses in larvae, pupae and adults of Tenebrio molitor. The examination of the nanodiamond biodistribution in insect cells demonstrated the presence of nanodiamond aggregates mainly in hemocytes, where nanoparticles were efficiently collected as a result of phagocytosis. To a lesser extent, nanodiamond aggregates were also detected in fat body cells, while they were not observed in Malpighian tubule cells.

Application of Molecularly Imprinted Polymers (MIP) and Magnetic Molecularly Imprinted Polymers (mag-MIP) to Selective Analysis of Quercetin in Flowing Atmospheric-Pressure Afterglow Mass Spectrometry (FAPA-MS) and in Electrospray Ionization Mass Spectrometry (ESI-MS).

Molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) and magnetic molecularly imprinted polymer (mag-MIP) for solid extraction and pre-concentration of quercetin have been successfully prepared by thermal polymerization method using quercetin (Q) as a template, acrylamide (AA) as a functional monomer, and ethylene glycol dimethacrylate (EGDMA) as a cross-linking agent. The MIP and mag-MIP were successfully applied in analysis of quercetin by mass spectrometry (MS) methods. To perform ambient plasma ionization experiments, a setup consisting of the heated crucible, a flowing atmospheric-pressure afterglow (FAPA) plasma ion source, and amaZon SL ion trap (Bruker, Bremen, Germany) was used.

Alginate/PAMAM dendrimer - Halloysite beads for removal of cationic and anionic dyes.

The alginate beads have been widely used for dye removal. However, most of the systems described in literature refer to one type of dyes and the adsorbents of cationic ones are dominant. In this study, the composite alginate beads were prepared and characterized.

Valuable natural products from marine and freshwater macroalgae obtained from supercritical fluid extracts.

The biologically active compounds (fatty acids, pigments, phenolics, and flavonoid content) were studied in supercritical fluid extracts from the biomass of marine (, , , and their multi-species mixture) and freshwater () macroalgae. Different extraction techniques were used in order to compare differences in the biologically active compound composition of the macroalgal extracts. The results indicated that the saturated and unsaturated fatty acids ranged from C9:0 to C22:0.

Halloysite nanotubes as carriers of vancomycin in alginate-based wound dressing.

The influence of an inorganic support - halloysite nanotubes - on the release rate and biological activity of the antibiotic encapsulated in alginate-based dressings was studied. The halloysite samples were loaded with approx. 10 wt.

Physico-chemical characterization of formulations containing endomorphin-2 derivatives.

In this study semisolid formulations containing AcYPFF (N-acetyl-Tyr-Pro-Phe-Phe-NH) tetrapeptide were obtained and characterized in terms of rheology, stability by multiple light scattering and particle size distribution by laser diffraction. Additionally, the release studies of tetrapeptide from formulations obtained were performed. The influence of different factors such as semisolid and membrane type on tetrapeptide release rate was examined.

Molecularly imprinted polymers as selective adsorbents for ambient plasma mass spectrometry.

The application of molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) as molecular scavengers for ambient plasma ionization mass spectrometry has been reported for the first time. MIPs were synthesized using methacrylic acid as functional monomer; nicotine, propyphenazone, or methylparaben as templates; ethylene glycol dimethacrylate as a cross-linker; and 2,2'-azobisisobutyronitrile as polymerization initiator. To perform ambient plasma ionization experiments, a setup consisting of the heated crucible, a flowing atmospheric-pressure afterglow (FAPA) plasma ion source, and a quadrupole ion trap mass spectrometer has been used.

Determination of conditional stability constants for phytic acid complexes with Mg, Ca and Zn ions using electrospray ionization mass spectrometry.

The electrospray ionization mass spectrometry competitive method has been used for the determination of the conditional stability constants of phytic acid complexes with Mg, Ca and Zn ions. The competing complexation between ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) and phytic acid was studied. For EDTA complexes with Mg, Ca and Zn ions, the values of the conditional stability constants are known and were used for the calculation of this constant for the phytic acid complexes.